International News Coverage

Middle East, Terrorism and Counterterrorism

European investigators moved on a broad front Friday to sweep up suspected militants, with the police announcing that 13 Belgians had been detained in this country and two in France, a day after two other Belgians believed to be planning an attack on police officers were killed in a shootout.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian counterpart Mohammad Jawad Zarif met in Paris on Friday to try to narrow gaps over Iran’s nuclear program, their second session in three days with broader negotiations due to resume soon.

France’s lower house of Parliament approved extending French airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq. France quickly joined the United States in conducting airstrikes against the Islamic State last year. French law requires a vote on extending such operations after four months.

The Americas

Pope Francis has electrified Roman Catholics in the United States with the open, accepting tone he has brought to the role, and his first visit later this year is expected to draw more than a million followers eager to set eyes on him.

Asia

Indonesian divers pulled out the cockpit voice recorder from the sunken wreckage of an AirAsia passenger jet on Tuesday, a key step towards determining the cause of the crash that killed all 162 people aboard.

Energy Security, Science and Technology, Climate Change

It’s official: 2014 was the hottest year ever. Two separate analyses by NASA and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration found that temperatures across the globe last year were the warmest since 1880. The 10 warmest years, with the exception of 1998, have occurred since 2000.

Economic Diplomacy

Speaking at an event hosted by the American Security Project, Charles Rivkin, Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs, linked the BIT and IPR when he explained that if BIT negotiations moved forward, “it would form the framework for U.S.-India investment and trade. With the BIT would come a discussion on IPR protection.”

“We are looking to deepen our economic relationship with India, as Secretary (of State, John) Kerry emphasised in his recent visit,” Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs Charles H Rivkin, said in his address to the American Security Project.

On Our Flashpoint Blog

As companies emerged from the financial crisis over the last five to 10 years, a new executive-level position began to rise in prominence across diverse industries. Once a position specific to the banking industry, chief risk officers (“CROs”) are now considered to be a vital member of any c-suite.

ASP’s Fusion Energy Research Intern Caroline Von Wurden and ASP’s Senior Fellow for Energy and Climate Andrew Holland wrote an Op-Ed published on January 13 in The Hill citing the need for strong political leadership and clear policy goals in developing a fusion energy program in the U.S.

Today CENTCOM’s twitter and YouTube accounts were hacked by an ISIL affiliated group. The hack, claimed by the ISIL affiliated group CyberCaliphate, resulted in offensive messages, distribution of already published documents that the hackers dubbed as “secret” and postings of office contact details of several generals. During the same time of the hack, the President was speaking on the need for stronger cyber-security.

Don’t call it traffic. Call it congestion. An excessive accumulation consolidating in one artery with no possibility of swift passage. At a minimum, we are subjected to this malady of the American causeway twice daily regardless of mode of transportation.

As global temperatures rise, disease vectors are changing. While it is still too early to predict how bad future disease patterns will be, the WHO claims that, “changes in infectious disease transmission patterns are a likely major consequence of climate change.”

One would hope that the American consumer wouldn’t be so short-sighted as to base a major purchase – one that could affect their personal economic health for five years or more – on short term fluctuations in gas prices.